Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics
Autor(a) principal: | |
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Data de Publicação: | 2012 |
Tipo de documento: | Artigo |
Idioma: | eng |
Título da fonte: | Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
Texto Completo: | http://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012 |
Resumo: | The purpose of this paper, that reflects an ongoing research, is to suggest the usefulness of an analysis of the readings of Karl Popper and Leo Strauss on Plato's political philosophy. Very different as they are, both thinkers saw in the Republic one of the most powerful critics of democracy and built interpretations and polemic arguments by contrast with Plato's arguments. There are currently two arguments questioning liberal or constitutional democracy. The first originates in the social sciences, which point out a number of defects that are innate in the system: asymmetry in information and agency problems between governors and governed. The other is rather popular or media-based but it shares with the first the criticism of democratic decision-making mechanisms albeit adding an extreme view of politics and politicians that justifies apathy or even contempt for everything that is political. The two interpretations, by Popper and Strauss, different as they are, also share with each other certain characteristics like anti-historicism, axiological non-neutrality and a certain (critical or zetetic) rationalism. We consider that they have the ability to widen, temporally and spatially, the horizon of the debates about contemporary regimes and democracy. |
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Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classicsDemocracypolitical legitimacyPlatoKarl PopperLeo StraussThe purpose of this paper, that reflects an ongoing research, is to suggest the usefulness of an analysis of the readings of Karl Popper and Leo Strauss on Plato's political philosophy. Very different as they are, both thinkers saw in the Republic one of the most powerful critics of democracy and built interpretations and polemic arguments by contrast with Plato's arguments. There are currently two arguments questioning liberal or constitutional democracy. The first originates in the social sciences, which point out a number of defects that are innate in the system: asymmetry in information and agency problems between governors and governed. The other is rather popular or media-based but it shares with the first the criticism of democratic decision-making mechanisms albeit adding an extreme view of politics and politicians that justifies apathy or even contempt for everything that is political. The two interpretations, by Popper and Strauss, different as they are, also share with each other certain characteristics like anti-historicism, axiological non-neutrality and a certain (critical or zetetic) rationalism. We consider that they have the ability to widen, temporally and spatially, the horizon of the debates about contemporary regimes and democracy.Centro de Estudos Humanísticos da Universidade do Minho2012-01-01info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/articletext/htmlhttp://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012Revista Diacrítica v.26 n.2 2012reponame:Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)instname:Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãoinstacron:RCAAPenghttp://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012Colen,Joséinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess2024-02-06T16:58:26Zoai:scielo:S0807-89672012000200012Portal AgregadorONGhttps://www.rcaap.pt/oai/openaireopendoar:71602024-03-20T02:15:11.241189Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informaçãofalse |
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
title |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
spellingShingle |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics Colen,José Democracy political legitimacy Plato Karl Popper Leo Strauss |
title_short |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
title_full |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
title_fullStr |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
title_full_unstemmed |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
title_sort |
Democratic institutions: the spell of Plato and the return to the classics |
author |
Colen,José |
author_facet |
Colen,José |
author_role |
author |
dc.contributor.author.fl_str_mv |
Colen,José |
dc.subject.por.fl_str_mv |
Democracy political legitimacy Plato Karl Popper Leo Strauss |
topic |
Democracy political legitimacy Plato Karl Popper Leo Strauss |
description |
The purpose of this paper, that reflects an ongoing research, is to suggest the usefulness of an analysis of the readings of Karl Popper and Leo Strauss on Plato's political philosophy. Very different as they are, both thinkers saw in the Republic one of the most powerful critics of democracy and built interpretations and polemic arguments by contrast with Plato's arguments. There are currently two arguments questioning liberal or constitutional democracy. The first originates in the social sciences, which point out a number of defects that are innate in the system: asymmetry in information and agency problems between governors and governed. The other is rather popular or media-based but it shares with the first the criticism of democratic decision-making mechanisms albeit adding an extreme view of politics and politicians that justifies apathy or even contempt for everything that is political. The two interpretations, by Popper and Strauss, different as they are, also share with each other certain characteristics like anti-historicism, axiological non-neutrality and a certain (critical or zetetic) rationalism. We consider that they have the ability to widen, temporally and spatially, the horizon of the debates about contemporary regimes and democracy. |
publishDate |
2012 |
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv |
2012-01-01 |
dc.type.status.fl_str_mv |
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion |
dc.type.driver.fl_str_mv |
info:eu-repo/semantics/article |
format |
article |
status_str |
publishedVersion |
dc.identifier.uri.fl_str_mv |
http://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012 |
url |
http://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012 |
dc.language.iso.fl_str_mv |
eng |
language |
eng |
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv |
http://scielo.pt/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0807-89672012000200012 |
dc.rights.driver.fl_str_mv |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
eu_rights_str_mv |
openAccess |
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv |
text/html |
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv |
Centro de Estudos Humanísticos da Universidade do Minho |
publisher.none.fl_str_mv |
Centro de Estudos Humanísticos da Universidade do Minho |
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv |
Revista Diacrítica v.26 n.2 2012 reponame:Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) instname:Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação instacron:RCAAP |
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Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação |
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RCAAP |
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RCAAP |
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Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
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Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) |
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Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos) - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (UMIC) - FCT - Sociedade da Informação |
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